SUSTAINABILITY AND CONSUMER BEHAVIOR: ENHANCING TRUST AND PURCHASE DECISIONS IN ECO-FRIENDLY PRODUCTS
Catur Widayati1*- Fadhila Dhia Malihah- Dekrita Putri Puspa Wijaya- Hasliza Abdul Halim

Management Department, Faculty of Economic and Business, Universitas Mercubuana

Abstract

This study aims to analyse the factors influencing purchasing decisions for BPA-free labelled baby plastic products by examining the roles of green knowledge, green attitude, and green trust. In addition, the study investigates the mediating effect of green trust within the framework of sustainable marketing, emphasising the importance of consumer trust in enhancing environmentally friendly purchasing behaviour. The study population consists of women with toddlers residing in the West Java region who have purchased BPA-free baby plastic products, with a total sample of 360 respondents. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire with Likert-scale measurements and analysed through a quantitative approach using the Structural Equation Modelling-Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) method. The findings reveal that green knowledge, green attitude, and green trust each have a positive and significant direct effect on purchasing decisions. However, green trust does not mediate the relationship between green knowledge and purchasing decisions, while it significantly mediates the relationship between green attitude and purchasing decisions. These insights highlight that consumer trust and environmental awareness are crucial in shaping sustainable purchasing decisions. This study contributes to sustainable marketing literature by providing empirical evidence on the interplay of green knowledge, green attitude, and green trust in influencing eco-friendly purchase behaviour. The unique contribution lies in demonstrating the asymmetric role of green trust as a mediator, which deepens the understanding of how consumer trust differentially drives purchasing decisions for eco-friendly products.

Keywords: Green knowledge, green attitude, green trust, purchasing decisions, BPA-free, sustainable marketing.

Topic: Governance, Policy, and Education of Coastal Area